Mortise template assembly



1958 J. H. GODFREY 2,821,028

MORTISE TEMPLATE ASSEMBLY Filed Aug. 31. 1953 '2 Sheets-Siieet 1 FIG.! (8 H62 INVENTOR. JAMES H. GODFREY ATTORNEYS Jan, 28, 1958 J. H. GODFREY MORTISE TEMPLATE ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 31, 1953 FIG.4

FIG.3

FIG.5

INVENTOR. L/AMEJ H GODFREY mw W ATT RNEYS Unite tates MoRTIsE TEWLATE ASSEMBLY Application August 31, 1953, Serial No. 377,347

4 Claims. (Cl. 33l97) The present invention relates to a mortise template assembly for locating hinge mortises on doors and jambs.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved mortise template assembly for quickly and accurately locating a plurality of hinge mortises on doors and jambs.

Another object is to provide a mortise template assembly having only two mortise locating templates, and link means interconnecting the two templates by means of pivotal connections at corresponding locations on the two templates, so as to permit each template to be rapidly and easily translated, leap-frog fashion, along a work surface relative to the other template.

Another object is to provide a mortising template assembly having only two mortise locating templates but so constructed and arranged as to enable any number of mortises to be rapidly and easily located in accurately aligned equally spaced relation.

Another object is to provide a mortising template assembly of the character described which can be conveniently folded into a package having a length much shorter than the work surface for which the tool may be employed, which package may be easily and conveniently stowed or carried in an ordinary tool kit.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is an outline view of a mortise template assembly constructed in accordance with the present invention and shown in its folded position for convenient stowage.

Figure 2 is a perspective view, to a reduced scale, of the mortise template assembly, illustrating the manner in which one template is transferred relative to the other template along a work surface to be mortised.

Figure 3 is a plan view to an enlarged scale of the operation of a template for use in the template assembly.

Figure 4 is a sectional view of the structure shown in Figure 3 taken on the line 4-4 thereof.

Figure 5 is a sectional view of the structure shown in Figure 3 taken on the line 5-5 thereof.

Referring to the drawings, the mortise template assembly includes a top template 2 and a second or middle template 4, each of which functions in the usual manner to guide a mortising tool. The templates 2 and 4 are identical, and each includes a frame 6 of hollow rectangular shape which is adapted to be placed on the edge of the door or on the face of the jamb to be mortised. The frame 6 carries a pair of spaced frame shoes or bases 8 by which the frame 6 is supported from the work surface to be mortised, e. g. the edge of a door or the face of a corresponding door jamb. From one side of the frame 6 depends a deep longitudinal flange or rail 10 which is 2,821,028 Patented Jan. 28,1958

adapted to abut the side of a door and locate the frame 6 transversely of the door edge. From the opposite side of the frame 6 depends a shallow longitudinal flange or rail 12 which is adapted to abut a door stop to locate the frame 6 transversely relative to a jamb.

Supported at each end of the frame 6 for longitudinal sliding movement relative thereto is a pair of end slides 14, 16. The end slides 14, 16 are adapted to be slidably positioned in the frame 6 so that their adjacent or inner edges 18, 20 are spaced apart a distance corresponding to the length of the hinge for which the mortise is to be cut. When properly positioned the end slides 14, 16 may be secured by tightening screws 22 which clamp the end slides between the frame bases 8 and the frame 6.

Supported for longitudinal sliding movement on the top end slide 14 of the top template 2 is a height gauge 26 having a flange 28 depending at its upper end perpendicular to the plane of the frame 6. The flange 23 is mounted for pivoting about pin 30, so as to be capable of overlapping the end of a door or be rotated out of overlapping relation as desired. The function of the height gauge 26 is to locate the top template 2 to position the top mortise at the desired distance from the top of a door or jamb. When properly adjusted, the height gauge 26 may be fixed with respect to the frame 6 of the top template 2 by means of a clamping screw 32.

Mounted on the outer corner of each end slide 14, 16 is a nail bushing 36. Slidably supported in each nail bushing 36 is a double-headed nail 38, by means of which the templates 2 and 4 may be supported on the edge of a door or face of a jamb. Each nail 38 is provided with a retaining ring, not shown, adjacent its pointed end to hold the nail 38 within its bushing 36.

From the lower end slide 16 of the second template is slidably supported a second height gauge 40 similar in all respects to the height gauge 26 on the top template 2. The function of the second height gauge 40 is to permit positioning of the second template 4 at the top of the door or jamb when it is desired to locate mortises for hinges for right-hand doors. In locating mortises for hinges for left-hand doors, the template 2 previously re ferred to as the top template is positioned at the top of the door and the height gauge 26 carried by this top template performs the height positioning function. The template assembly carries an instruction plate inscribed to this effect and identifying the proper top template for positioning hinge mortises for left-hand doors.

Pivotally supported on a pin 50 secured to the outer end of the upper end slide 14 of the second template 4 is a first link 52. Likewise pivotally supported from a pin 54 supported on the outer end of the upper end slide 14 of the top template 2 is a second link 56. The pins 50 and 54 are disposed so that the axes of pivotal move ment of the two links 52 and 56 are parallel to the work surface to be mortised, and perpendicular to the direction of alignment of the plurality of mortises to be cut. The first and second links 52, 56 are secured in adjacent relation for telescopic sliding motion relative to one another by a link clamp 58 which embraces the two links 52, 56. The link clamp 58 is provided with a threaded hole in which is supported a thumb screw 60 by which the bases 8 and being'located transversely or edgewise thereof by their respective side rails or 12. The end slides 14, 16 on each template are slidably positioned so that their inner edges 18, 20 are spaced apart the proper distance to define the ends of a mortise which will accomr modate the desired hinge. The height gauge 26' at the top of the top template 2, or alternatively the gauge 40 at the top of the second template'4, if the surface is to be mortised for hinges for right-hand doors, is suitably adjusted to position the top template 2 at the proper distance from the top of the door or jamb. The link clamp thumb screw 60 is then loosened and the first and second links 52, 56 are slidably positioned relative to one another as is necessary to provide thedesired spacing betweenthe top template 2 and the second template 4. This spacing will be a function of the length of the door or jamb, the length of the hinge mortises, the desired distance from the top and bottom of the door, or jamb of the top and bottom hinge mortises, and the number of hinge mortises to be out. It will be apparent from Figure 2 that the distance from the top of the hinge mortise located by the top template to the top of the hinge mortise located by thesecond template will be equal to the distance between the pivot pin for the first link and the pivot pin for the second link, as determined by the relative position of the links as clamped.

When the links 52, 56 are properly adjusted and clamped to provide'the desired distance between the mortise located by the top template 2 and that located by the second template 4, the top and second templates are secured to the edge of a door by driving into the edge of the door those nails 38 on the sides of the respective frames 6 adjacent the deep side rails 10. If the templates are to be secured to the face of a jamb, the two nails 38 on the side of each frame 6 adjacent the shallow longitudinal rail 12 are driven in.

Each nail 38 is driven in until its lower head abuts the top of the nail bushing 36. This leaves the top head of the nail upwardly spaced from the top of the bushing to permit the nail to be easily withdrawn by a claw hammer or the like. Each nail 38 is of such a length that when its lower head abuts the top of the nail bushing 36 the nail point will penetrate the work surface a suflicient amount to support the mortise template securely without mutilating the work surface.

When the mortise template assembly is thus secured with its top template 2 at the position adjacent the top of the door or jamb and its second template 4 positioned the desired distance below the top template 2, the area defined on the work surface between the inner edges 18, 20 of the end slides 14, 16 and the adjacent inside edge of each side rail 10, 12 is mortised or routed by any'suitable mortising tool to form the mortise for the top hinge and the second hinge.

When the top and second mortises have been cut, the top template 2 is then detached from the edge of the door or face of the jamb by withdrawing the two nails 38 securing it thereto, and is pivoted by means of the links 52, 56 to a position on the lower side of the second template 4, as shown in dotted lines in Figure 2, thus translating template 2 about template 4.

'As, previously mentioned, the axes about which both the first and second links 52, 56 are arranged to pivot are parallel to the plane of the edge of the door or face of the jamb, and perpendicular to the length of the door or jamb, i. e. to the line of the mortises to be cut. The height gauge flange 28 is conveniently rotated about pin out of overlapping relation with the work surface, to avoid striking thereof.

The new position of the top template 2 defines theposition of the third mortise; which for a three-hinge door would of course be the bottom mortise; With the two templates 2 and 4 thus arranged so that the second template 4 is uppermost on the work surface, it will be apparent that the distance-from, the. top ofthesecond mon tise to the top of the third or bottom mortise will, like that between the top mortise and second mortise, be equal to the distance between the pivot pins 50 and 54. 'The top template 2 is secured in its bottom position by driving in whichever two nails 38 engage the work surface, and the bottom mortise is thenrouted in the work surface as before. If additional mortises are to be cut, the second template l is pivoted over the top template 2 to a position below it, leap-frog fashion. Additional pivotal transfers of the templates are performed as necessary to complete the line of mortises along the whole work surface.

When the-mortise template assembly is used to locate hinge mortises on a jambface for correspondence with mortises on a door edge, the top template 2 is located from the top of the door jamb by holding the height gauge 26 with the flange 28 firmly against the top of the jamb. Thus the template assembly is positioned lower down on a jamb face than on the corresponding door edge by the thickness of the flange 28, and this provides the clearance requisite for free operation of thedoor.

Thus it may be seen that the improved mortise template assembly constructed in accordance with the present invention provides a means whereby a series of aligned spaced hinge mortisesmay be located on door edges and jamb faces rapidly and accurately. Moreover, once the height gauge 26 or 46, end slides 14, 16 and lmks 52, 56 have been suitably adjusted, the mortise template assembly may be transferred quickly and easily from door to door or jamb to jamb and a large number of mortises cut in a short time. When the assembly is not in use it may be compactly folded into a package of short length for easy storage, as shown in Figure l.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted-as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

I claim: 7

l. A mortise template assembly comprising apair of longitudinally spaced and aligned mortise templates, and a longitudinally extending link ofv adjustable length pivotally connected at its opposite ends respectively to said templates at corresponding locations thereon for movement of each end thereofrelative to the respective template about an axis extending laterally of the respective template,

2. An articulate mortise template assembly comprising a first template and a second template longitudinally spaced therefrom, a first pivot on the first template having a pivot axis extending laterally of said first template, a second pivot mounted at a corresponding location on the second template and having a pivot axisextending parallel with the axis of said first pivot, and a longitudinally extending telescopically adjustable link connecting said first and second pivots.

3. An articulate mortise template assembly for defining the locus of engagement of a mortising tool with a work surface to locate a plurality of longitudinally. aligned spaced-apart mortises thereon comprising, a first mortise template having a work-engaging surface, a second mortise template longitudinally spaced from said first mortise template and having a work-engaging surface, a first pivot on said first template having a, pivot axis extending parallel to the work-engaging surface thereof and, laterally ofsaid first template, a second pivot located ata corresponding point on said second template and having a pivot axis extending parallel to the work-engaging surface thereof and laterally of said second template, and a link of telescopically adjustable length connected between said first and second pivots.

4. In a mortise template assembly for locating a plurality of longitudinally aligned hinge mortises in equally spaced relation on doors and jambs, a first mortising tool guiding frame and a second mortising tool guiding frame longitudinally spaced therefrom, a pair of longitudinally 10 spaced adjustable end slides carried by each of said frames for defining the ends of a mortise located thereby, a pair of pivots located respectively at corresponding positions on corresponding end slides of the frames, said pivots having parallel pivot axes extending laterally of 15 6 said slides, and a link of adjustable length connected between said pivots.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,524,234 Carter June 26, 1924 1,644,666 Carter Oct. 11, 1927 1,647,685 Cooper Nov. 1, 1927 1,788,256 Sherwin Jan. 6, 1931 2,660,803 Sacrey Dec. 1, 1953 2,670,546 Godfrey Mar. 2, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 231,376 Great Britain Apr. 2, 1925 

